Windows Server 2008 App Compat

The new features of a Microsoft release are interesting, but sometimes it's more important to know
what won't work with a new release. Windows IT Pro Contributing Editor Alan Sugano raised that point in
a conversation about Windows Vista and Windows Server
2008. Alan said he continues to deal with Vista app compat
issues, such as the fact that SonicWALL still doesn't have a
VPN client for Vista, the BlackBerry redirector still doesn't
work, and a Vista patch for Outlook Web Access (OWA) is
required with Exchange Server 2003. Of course, Microsoft's
Vista certification programs designate whether a software
product "Works with Windows Vista" or is "Certified for
Windows Vista." But one problem with these certifications
is that some ISVs participate in the logo program while
others choose not to. As a result, the lack of certification
doesn't necessarily mean that a product won't work just
fine on Vista. That inconsistency raises the question of how
useful these logos are for evaluating compatibility.

With Windows 2008, Microsoft aims to improve the
logo program and its value for ISVs, as well as IT pros. The
company solicited feedback about the Windows Server
2003 certification program. Senior Product Manager Steve
Bell told me Microsoft "had several Windows Server 2003
logos that had different levels of criteria and different test
cases. \[That program\] provided a very good technical bar
that applications needed to meet, but it was somewhat
confusing to IT pros: What does ‘Designed for Windows
Server 2003' \[versus\] ‘Designed for Windows Server 2003
Enterprise Edition' mean? We wanted to make it easier to
know that \[the new logo\] is the standard for mission-critical applications to run on Windows Server 2008, no matter
which version. That's why we have only one logo for Windows Server 2008, and that's ‘Certified'. " (Server Core will
not have a separate logo because it's an installation option
that supports a subset of Windows 2008 roles.)

In addition, as with the Vista program, Windows 2008
applications can receive a "Works with" label. Whereas the
"Certified" logo "supports rigorous standards for stability,
security, reliability, and overall performance," according to
Microsoft, the "Works with" designation "ensures that an
application is in compliance with best practices for the most
common Windows Server 2008 functions."

A New Approach
What's important about the Windows 2008 certification,
Microsoft said, is that it "reduces the cost of certification
by 50 percent for ISVs, and provides a comprehensive suite
of new tools to help them achieve certification. It is also designed to help customers select software applications."
Microsoft is trying to remove barriers that previously prevented ISVs from certifying their applications and to get
as many applications certified as possible to provide the
consistency lacking in previous logo programs.

Taking a new approach, the company is making the
same tools ISVs use to test products available to IT pros
to test their commercial and homegrown applications
for compatibility with Windows 2008. Steve emphasized,
"The logo program is designed for IT pros, as well as ISVs,
to identify top-performing technologies. The program
saves IT pros a tremendous amount of time in evaluating
Windows Server 2008 applications, as well as transitioning
to 64-bit."

Steve continued, "For the first time, Microsoft has
provided certification utilities for Windows Server as a free
download. These are the same utilities that third-party test
vendors will use to qualify applications for certification. In
the past, an ISV would take its application to a third-party
test vendor, VeriTest, to have that application validated.
But the IT pro had to have separate policies and methods
to validate the application once it hit their door, whether or
not it was certified. The Certified for Windows Server 2008
tool is a GUI-based wizard-style interface." (You can download the free tool at http://www.innovateonwindowsserver.com/learnbuild.aspx.)

The Logo's Value
The question is whether ISVs will be motivated to spend the
time and money required for certification, even with the
new, less costly process. Does the logo matter in purchasing decisions? Some IT pros do take the logo into account.
For example, Mike Dragone noted that "vendors that take
the time to go these extra steps have more robust products
with fewer issues."

ISV Phil Lieberman of Lieberman Software Corporation pushed Microsoft to make the logo program
affordable and achievable for smaller ISVs, and he would
heartily agree with Mike. As Phil puts it, "The logo is a way
of measuring the level of investment ISVs are making for
the future of their customers." Phil is committed to certifying his company's products as a guarantee of quality to his
customers.

Whether you're evaluating software for purchase or
wondering whether existing applications will run on Windows 2008, the new logo tools could prove useful. Let me
know if you try them out.